Deciding to become an egg donor is a significant and exciting milestone. After making the decision to donate their eggs, many women feel a range of emotions: happiness, excitement, and even anxiousness. One of the best ways to ease nerves related to becoming a first-time egg donor is to be as informed as possible about the egg donation process.

Even if you’ve fully accepted the fact that you will be giving a part of yourself to bring forward a life, it’s important to be aware of all of the realities and hurdles that might arise. These five tips can help you prepare and make the best of the experience.

Five Tips for Egg Donors

#1 Get tested—Find Out if Donation Is Right for You

Egg donors have to be in overall good health.

Before the egg donation process actually takes place, you’ll go through a screening process that has several general steps.

  1. An initial application is submitted.
  2. Your application is accepted.
  3. Selection by intended parents (IPs).
  4. Medical screening is completed.
  5. Legal aspects are handled.
  6. Injections begin.
  7. Egg retrieval occurs.

During step four, a comprehensive medical exam is done, blood levels are drawn, and an internal ultrasound will be performed to make sure your ovaries are functioning properly. Although some of the process can be a bit uncomfortable, the exam shouldn’t be painful and will lead to medical clearance: a huge step for both you and your IPS.

#2 Ask Questions—Lots of Them

Throughout the process, you should be doing two things: staying calm and asking lots of questions. If you’re a direct person, this may seem like a ‘no-brainer’, but egg donors who are a bit shy or prone to anxiousness may have trouble speaking up. To avoid this, prepare your questions beforehand and make an agreement with yourself that, no matter how ‘silly’ it may seem, if you have a question, you will ask!

Possible questions for first-time egg donors:

  • If I travel, who pays for my expenses?
  • Can I bring a travel companion along?
  • Can you explain the medical process?
  • How is compensation decided?
  • What are the risks?

#3 Embrace the Positives

Once you know the right things to ask, you’ll be ready to embrace the positive aspects of egg donation. The ‘pros’ of becoming an egg donor will vary from person to person, since many different motivators lead to such a giving sacrifice. It can be a wonderfully rewarding experience to know that you are helping someone start a family of their own. This was the case for egg donor ‘S,’ who was raised in a blended home with biological, step, and adopted siblings. For her, being able to help someone have the family they’ve always wanted through a nontraditional route was very fulfilling.

Although about 70% of our egg donors list ‘helping’ as the reason they decided to donate their eggs, many women are first drawn in by the possibility of compensation. This is one of the positive aspects of egg donation for some egg donors, and you should not feel guilty if it is a ‘plus’ for you.

#4 Accept the Downsides

It would be untrue to say that every part of egg donation is positive for both the intended parent or egg donors. Going into the process with ‘rose-colored glasses’ and remaining blissfully unaware of the risks can bring disappointment in the long-run. To avoid this egg donor pitfall, make sure to do your research and become fully aware of all that egg donation entails, both physically and psychologically. If you’re uncomfortable with the not-so-pretty aspects of egg donation, it might not be the right choice for you right now.

#5 Find Solace and Seek Support

Once you make it to this step, it’s time to prepare yourself mentally and physically for what lies ahead. Eat healthily, meditate, exercise, spend time with loved ones. Do whatever it takes for you to feel at your absolute best. Seek support from others by reading some of our egg donation spotlight stories and taking part in in-person or online support groups.

By embracing these steps along your egg donation journey, you can fully embrace your decision to give the gift of life as an Egg Donor.

Ready to Apply to Become an Egg Donor?

If you’ve reviewed the qualifications and are ready to submit your application, click the button below to be taken directly to our application form.

Staci Swiderski, CEO and owner of Family Source Consultants has been involved in the field of reproductive medicine since 2002. Staci has vigorously grown the comprehensive egg donation and gestational surrogacy agency to become a worldwide leader in the third-party reproduction field. Staci is a former intended parent herself. She and her husband welcomed their son via gestational surrogacy in 2005. Additionally, Staci had the experience of assisting an infertile couple (AKA Recipient Parents) build their family through her efforts as an egg donor, with her donation resulting in the births of their son and daughter.